Spring-actuated stop motion for knitting machines



W. T. BARRATT SPRING ACTUATED STOP MOTION FOR KNITTING MACHINES FiledJuly 10, 1923 VIILLIAM T. BARBATT, OE BENNZll'G-TQN, VERMONT.

SERING-ACTUATED STOP MOTION "FOR KNITTING MACHINES.

Application filled July 10,

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I. lVILLIAM T. BARRAT'L, a citizen of the UnitedStates. residing at Bennington, in the county of Bennington and State ofVermont. have invented new and useful Improvements in SpringActuat edStop Motions for Knitting Machines, of which the following is aspecification.

This invention relates to improvements in stop motion mechanisms formachines in which a strand or strands of yarn, are employed in themanufacture of fabric.

The particular embodiment of my invention hereinafter set forth in thespecification and contained in the claims is especial= ly adatped foruse in connection with knitting machines and is an improvement upon theinvention embodied in -Jetters Patent- No. 1,461,172, issued to me July10, 1923, entitled Stop motion for knitting machines, to which referencemay behad for a more perfect understanding of the present invention.

The improvement of this invention over the said Letters Patent consistsmainly in the addition thereto of a very delicately adjustable springtension member for the yarn guide of said mechanism, whereby a quickeraction may be imparted to the stop mechanism when the yarn becomesbroken.

It will be understood that a stop motion of this invention is adapted tobe used in connection with the lightest and frailest kinds of yarn andtherefore. the spring ten sion upon the yarn guide which is to operatethe stop mechanism to stop the machine when the yarn breaks or runs out.must be very delicate and capable of fine adjustment for differentweight yarns.

The invention consists particularly, therefore, in'the yarn guidemechanism and the spring tension means whereby it may be actuated.

In all respects the objects of this invention are the same as those setforth in said application for United States Letters Patent, with theadded object of rendering the 1,186.645. patented June 13, 1916.

by a spring 21, Fig. 2.

1923. Serial No. 650,569.

mechanism therein set forth more sensitive and quicker in its action.

To these ends and others hereinafter appearing in the specification. theinvention consists in the combination and arrangement of parts setforthin the following specification and particularly pointed out in theclaims.

Referring to the drawings Figure 1 is an enlarged plan view of theportion of the stop mechanism which includes the thread guide and thenovel tension mechanism connected therewith, together with the stopmembers.

Fig. 2 is a sectional elevation taken on line 2-2 Figure 1..

Fig. Sis a detail front elevation of the yarn guide stop mechanism.

Like -numerals refer "to like parts throughout the several views of thedrawings.

In the drawings 10 is the frame of the ma chine. 11 is a rotary shaft towhich is fastened toothed discs 12 which constitute rotary stop members.13 is a normally stationary stop member comprising a bar extendinglongitudinally of the machine and arranged to slide thereon. Thismechanism is substantially the same as disclosed in said Letters PatentNo. 1,461,172 and in Letters Patent issued to me. No. 1,173,214,patented February 29.. 1916. and No.

The normally stationary stop member 13 is provided with oppositelydisposed brackets 14 and 15. The bracket 1e has a rock shaft 16pivotally mounted thereon and one end of said shaft an arm 17 is fastthereto and projects upwardly terminating at its upper end in a yarnguide 19. This arm is provided with a slidably adjustable weight 20which is held in adjusted position A stationary yarn guide 22 ispositioned above the yarn guide 19 and is fastened to the bracket 14.Another yarn guide 23 is positioned below the yarn guide 19' and mountedupon a bracket 2% which is adjustably fastened to the bracket 14, sothat the yarn guide 23 can be adjusted toward and away from the yarnguide 19 to increase or diminish respectively the tension upon the yarn25, which yarn extends from bobbin, not shown in the drawin s, through astationary yarn guide 26 fast to the frame of the machine, through'theyarn guides 23, 19 and 22 and thence passes to the machine, where it isguided to the needles in the usual manner.

The arm 17, when the yarn is passing through the yarn guide 19 undertension during the operation of the machine, is norinally positioned ata slight angle toa vertic-a1. plane containing the axis of the rockshaft 16. It is prevented from assuming at any time a vertical positionby abutting against the bracket 24, so that when the yarn breaks, thearm 17 and the yarn guide 19 will tip from the position shown in fulllines, Fig. 3, to the position shown in dotted lines, inclined towardthe right in said figure and with the locking arm 27, which is fast toor forms a part of the rock shaft 16, abutting against the normallystationary stop 18.

As will be seen by reference to Figs. 1, 2 and 3, when the arm 27 is inits elevated position, as shown in full lines in said figures, it willbe out of the path of the rotary stop member 12, and at that time theyarn guide will be in the position illustrated in full lines, Fig. 3,and the yarn will be passing therethrough under tension.

A manually rotatable pin 28 is mounted upon the bracket 14 and hasfastened thereto a light tension spring 29, one end of,

which is fastened to the pin 28, the other end. 30 of which constitutesa free end which bears against the locking arni2'1' and tends to throwit downwardlyinto the path of the rotary stop member 12. More or lesstension may he applied to the end 30 of the spring 29 by rotating thepin 28 by means of a lmuried disc 31 fast thereto. in order to lock thepin 28 in adjusted position a flat spring 32 is provided which isfastened by a screw to the bracket 14, the free end-of the springpressing against the knurled. periphery of the knurled disc 81.

Vi hen the yarn breaks the yarn guide 19 and its arm 17 will bemoved-from the position shown in full lines, Fig. 3. to that shown indotted lines by the spring 29 and also by the counterweight 20. Thespring 29 will cause this movement to the arn guide 19 to be madequickly and the arm 27 will abut against the normally stationary stop 13and the rotary stop member 12 will then engage the arm 27, and said arm27 then acting as a locking means will etc the rotation of the rotarystop 12 and the rotary shaft ll to which it is fastened. lVhen thisoccurs the stop mechanism of the machine will be operated to throw outthe clutch and stop the machine, as set forth in said Letters Patent No.1,173,244.

It will be noted that the rotatable pin 28 is positioned transversely ofthe axis of the rock shaft 16 and that the long free end 30 of thespring 29 enables a very delicate tension to be placed upon the springand a very light pressure to be imparted thereby to the locking arm 2?for actuating the yarn guide 19 when the yarn breaks or ii out.

Qhe yarn 34, Fig. 2 is led from a bobbin, not shown in the drawings,through yarn guides 35, 36, 3'? and 38 to the needles of the machine,the yarn guide 3. being supported upon an arm 39 which extends upwardlyfrom a rock shaft i0 pivotally m'ounted'in the bracket 15 and providedon the opposite end thereof to which the arm 39 is attached with alaterally extending arm 412 which is adapted to be engaged by one of therotary stop members 12 and said yarn guide o! operates in substantiallythe same manner as the yarn guide 19 and is operated by a spring 43which is constructed and'operates in substantially the same manner asthe spring 29, terminatingat one end thereof in a long free arm 441which bears against the lorl'king arm'i-2.

The number of bobbins and the number of yarn guides and rotary stops maybe increased as desired and may be located on opposite sides of themachine, in operating as he reinbefore described and set forth in saidapplication for Letters Patent 1,461,172.

The general operation of the mechanism which has been specifically andto some extent in general described is as follows: A sumnig the machineto be in operation and the parts to be in the relative 'i'ositionsillustrated in the figures of the drawings, it the yarn slackens orbreaks, or if for any reason the normal and proper operation of themachine in respect to the feeding of the yarn is interfered with, theyarn guide 19 or 37, through which the yarn passes which is notoperating properly, or which has become broken, as the case be, is movedfrom the position illustrated in fnll lines, Fig. 3, to the positionillustrated in dotted lines therein by the spring 29, or the spring 13acting upon its respective locking arm 27 or 42 and the locking arm 27or 42 will then be engaged by its respective ro tary member 1.2 and bythe normally sta tionary member 13, whereupon the rotation of theshaft11 will bestopped and through suitable mechanism will operate the stopmechanism in the same manner as set forth in said Letters Patent No.1,173,244 to throw the clutch member out of operative engagement withthe clutch pulley and the brake will then be set to stop the machine.

The rest of the operation of the stop mechanism will be the same as setforth in said Letters Patent 1,461,172 and the machine is reset inoperative position in the same manner as set forth in said applicationfor Letters Patent.

I claim 1. 3i stop motion mechanism for a knitting machine having, incombination, a rotary stop member, a normally stationary stop memberadjacent thereto, a rock shaft, a guide for a strand of yarn mounted onsaid rock shaft, an arm on said rock shaft constituting a locking meansand normally held out of interlocking engagement with said stop membersby said strand of yarn when under tension during the operation of saidknitting machine, a spring bearing against said arm and adapted to movethe same into interlocking engagement with said stops when allowed bysaid yarn so to do, whereby the rotation of said rotary stop member maybe stopped and mechanism actuated by the stopping of said rotary stopmember constructed and arranged to stop the rotation of the drivingshaft of said knitting machine.

2. A stop motion mechanism for a knitting machine having, incombination, a m: tary stop member, a normally stationary stop memberadjacent thereto, a rock shaft, a pair of arms on said rock shaft, aguide for a strand of yarn on one of said arms, the other of said armsconstituting a locking means and normally held out of interlockingengagement with said stop members by said strand of yarn when undertension during the operation of said knitting machine, a spring engagingsaid last-named arm and adapted to move the same into interlockingengagement with said stops when allowed by said yarn so to do, wherebythe rotation of said rotary stop member may be stopped, and mechanismactuated by the stopping of said rotary stop member constructed andarranged to stop the rotation of the driving shaft of said knittingmachine.

3. A stop motion mechanism for a knitting machine having, incombination, a rotary stop member, a normally stationary stop memberadjacent thereto, a rock shaft, an arm on said rock shaft, a yarn guidefor a strand. of yarn on said arm. said arm being adapted to be normallypositioned at a slight angle to a vertical plane containing the axialline of said rock shaft, another arm on said rock shaft constituting alocking means and normally held out of interlocking engagement with saidstop members by said strand of yarn when under tension during theoperation of said lmitting machine, a spring engaging said last-namedarm and adapted to move the same into interlocking engagementwith saidstops w ien allowed by said yarn-so to do, whereby the rotation of saidrotary stop member may be stopped, and mechanism actuated by thestopping of said rotary stop member constructed and arranged to stop therotation of the driving shaft of said knitting machine.

ft. A stop motion mechanism for a knitting machine having, incombination a rotary stop member, a normally stationary stop memberadjacent thereto, a rock shaft, a guide for a strand of yarn mounted onsaid rock shaft, an arm on said rock shaft constituting a locking meansand normally held out of interlocking engagement with said stop membersby said strand of yarn when under tension during the operation of saidknitting machine, a spring engaging said arm and adapted to move thesame into interlocking engagement with said stops when allowed by saidyarn so to do and means to adjust the tension of said spring, wherebythe rotation of said rotary stop member may be stopped and mechanismactuated by the stopping of said rotary stop member constructed andarranged to stop the rotation of the driving shaft of said knitting machine.

5. A stop motion mechanism for a knitting machine having, incombination, a rotary stop member, a normally stationary stop memberadjacent thereto, a rock shaft, a guide for strand of yarn mounted onsaid rock shaft, an arm on said rock shaft constituting a locking meansand normally held out of interlocking engagement with said stop membersby said strand of yarn when under tension during the operation of saidknitting machine, a manually rotatable member, a spring, one end ofwhich is fast to said member and the other end of which bears againstsaid arm, whereby the tension of said spring may be increased ordiminished, said arm being adapted to be moved by said spring intointerlocking engagement with said stops when allowed by said yarn so todo, whereby the rotation of said rotary stop member may be stopped andmechanism actuated by the stopping of said rotary stop memberconstructed and arranged to stop the rotation of the driving shaft ofsaid knitting machine.

6. A stop motion mechanism for a knit ting machine having, incombination. a rotary stop member, a normally stationary stop memberadjacent thereto, a rock shaft, a guide for a strand of yarn mounted onsaid rock shaft, an arm on said rock shaft constituting a locking meansand normally held out of interlocking engagement with said stop membersby said. strand of yarn &

when under tension during the operation of said knitting machine, amanually rotatable pin extending; transversely of the axis of said rockshaft, a spring Wire encircling said pin, one end of said Wire beingfastened to said pin and the other end engaging said arm, whereby thetension of said spring may be varied, said arm being adapted to be movedby said spring into interlocking engagement with said stops when allowedby said yarn so to do, whereby the rotation of said rotary stop membermay be stopped and mechenisln' actuated by the stopping of said rotarystop member constructed and arranged to stop the rotation of the drivingshaft of said knitting machine.

In testimony whereof I have hereunto set my hand in presence of twosubscribing witnesses.

WILLIAM T. BARRATT. lVitnesses:

IlARRY S. Moses, FRANK HURLEY.

